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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22954873">Practice</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LikeASwitchInHeat/pseuds/LikeASwitchInHeat'>LikeASwitchInHeat</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Flashes of Rhink [12]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rhett &amp; Link</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, High School, Link has a crush, M/M, Thunderstorms</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 12:07:17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>601</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22954873</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LikeASwitchInHeat/pseuds/LikeASwitchInHeat</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
      <p>In response to a Tumblr prompt for some “guitar fluff”.</p><p>Originally posted to Tumblr January 2019</p>
    </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Rhett McLaughlin/Link Neal</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Flashes of Rhink [12]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1433353</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>38</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Practice</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/ssodangdark/gifts">ssodangdark</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>In response to a Tumblr prompt for some “guitar fluff”.</p><p>Originally posted to Tumblr January 2019</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Lightning flashed outside Link’s living room window. The rain was really coming down now. Rhett sat at one end of the sofa, Link cross-legged at the opposite end.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rhett fumbled again with the chords. Link noticed how Rhett would stick his little tongue out from between his lips just the tiiiniest bit as he concentrated on getting it right. That subtle detail made him smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you laughin’ at me, Neal?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ha. Never. I would never laugh at the great guitar god, Rhett McLaughlin. Why, I remember when he was just getting his musical career started. The man could play a rousing recorder rendition of Oh! Susanna.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, one of us has to do this. We can’t make this band work with two lead singers. And I don’t see you liftin’ a finger to learn an instrument.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Link shrugged. He liked performing, and the thrill of an audience. He loved being in Wax Paper Dogz with Rhett. But he didn’t have much natural aptitude for instruments. He had taken up the recorder in fourth grade, because they were all forced to - and he’d sucked at it. He played trumpet in band in seventh grade, and even gotten pretty good at that; but it wasn’t out of passion. Well, not for music anyway. He’d been tricked into learning the trumpet, as Rhett was supposed to be playing alongside him before his instrument was stolen a few days into it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sing along with me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“While you play?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I wanna hear you sing, Link.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Link felt a warmth rising into his cheeks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They played through a couple covers that their band had learned. Link’s voice accompanying Rhett’s novice fingering. Link couldn’t really gauge how good they actually sounded, but making any kind of music together… it just felt right.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thunder boomed so loudly it shook the window, causing Link to yelp as the power went out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s fine,” Rhett assured him. “You got flashlights, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Link nodded. They went through the house collecting all the flashlights, and every one of Link’s mom’s scented candles they could find, lining them up on the coffee table in front of the sofa.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In the half-light, Link nervously chewed his lip. “You sure it’s safe to drive in this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You scared of the dark, Neal?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Whatever! I was just askin’… I mean, yeah. With my mom workin’ overnight, I don’t particularly wanna be alone in the freakin’ dark like this… And well, I… I’d like you to stay.``</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Was that so hard? To just ask?” He clapped Link on the back. “I’ll stay! We can practice some more.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Link grinned. “I’ll get us some hot cocoa.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How do you plan on heating them up, Einstein?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, right… a coupla cokes then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Link returned with the drinks, setting them down more in the middle of the coffee table than on opposite ends.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rhett sighed, with mildly exaggerated exasperation. “I just wanna be a hot musician, and woo women with my guitar!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Link snorted. “Here. You can practice on me.” He propped his head up in his hands, fixing his gaze on Rhett. “Go on! Play somethin’ for me. Woo me, you rock star!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Relax, ladies. We got all night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rhett played a somewhat better version of one of the songs they’d gone through earlier.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Woo!” Link cheered when he finished. “Woo-woo! Consider me thoroughly wooed?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rhett chuckled, waving him off. “Yeah, yeah…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m serious, Rhett. You’re getting better real quick.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guess I’m doin’ okay so far,” he said, winking at Link across the hodgepodge of candles they’d assembled. “Just gotta stick with this, so I can be hot!”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
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